No. 1 Draft Pick Earns Shocking Comparison to Mahomes

The anticipation continues to build for the 2025 NFL Draft with only days separating teams from the top prospects landing in a new destination or teams finding their next franchise centerpiece. 

Such franchise-altering players may fill a number of needs and positions. However, quite often that coveted piece happens to be a quarterback. This year's class does not boast the same talent pool at the position as recent years though some enticing prospects are making headlines. 

Namely, Miami product Cam Ward has taken the spotlight as the No. 1 quarterback in this year. In fact, his talents have him in position to be the the first overall pick to the Tennessee Titans less than two weeks from now. 

That comes with a hefty expectations and pressure to perform. ESPN NFL analyst recently piled onto that load with a surprising comparison to Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. 

“He reminds me of Patrick, he remind me of Mahomes with how he can be unconventional, throw the football from all different kinds of weird angles, and then just put a bunch of horsepower on it when he needs to,” Riddick said on NFL Live. 

“If someone was telling me hey, that’s maybe what you’re getting, I’d be pretty damn excited. I’m not saying I’m exactly right, but that’s my bet Cam Ward will have that kind of impact and play you that kind of style of football in Tennessee if they happen to select him No. 1.”

When it comes to play style, perhaps there are some similarities to be found in both players' "unconventional" performance. However, that is a lot to expect from a player walking into a different situation than Mahomes did. 

The Chiefs made the shocking selection of Mahomes midway through the first round in 2017. But he came in the league positioned to backup and learn under veteran Alex Smith. 

Not all quarterbacks get the luxury of a drawn out timeline and Ward himself may be forced to learn a lot more at a rapid pace. Those circumstances are not solely responsible for Mahomes' abundance of success since taking over the starting job.

But they do make for a daunting standard for any prospect to live up to when the Mahomes comparison is tossed around. Ward is a fine quarterback, but will have hills to climb in Tennessee to execute that unique play style at the next level the same way No. 15 has done in Kansas City.